Losing It!

Car Woes

2010-03-17T01:19:00Z

This is my car. Correction: this is my van:

Or rather it was my van? Maybe? (This is where the woe part comes in, fyi.)

It is a 2001 Sienna XLE. It's actually a pretty sweet ride (for a van). It's totally loaded - to the gills - with features. JBL speakers (which apparently means something really cool), leather interior (love), heated seats (LOVE), power sliding doors (DOUBLE LOVE), sun roof, 6-cylinder engine and so on.

The problem is, it needs a new engine. And a new radiator. And when they install a new (actually used and "rebuilt", with 137,000 km on it) engine they "might as well" replace the water pump and timing belt. Oh, and when they get it, they will most likely have to swap out some parts. All of this will add up to (most likely) $4800. Before GST. And just to give you an idea, last week the estimate was $4000. It seems every time I talk to the dealership the price goes up.

I should also point out that the black book value for a 2001 Sienna XLE (in good condition, mind) is about $4500. So you can see my dilemma: do I put up money for repairs to the tune of the full value of the vehicle? Or should I get a new one?

Here's the thing. I own this van outright, and I can afford to fix it. I don't really want to be taking on a monthly car payment, but I also don't want to put $5k into a vehicle that will have only a 90-day warranty and might just break down in some other way very soon. It is 11 years old. I also have this thing about replacing so much integral stuff on a vehicle. It's like, the ENGINE, people. Not a broken door latch (been there, done that) or brakes (you expect that). It's the things that make the van go, you know?

And maybe that's just dumb womanly-like worries. Maybe some guy who's worked in a garage and does his own oil changes wouldn't be intimidated by a ~~new~~ refurbished engine. But I am. Also, I just accepted a job as a substitute teacher, and that job will depend in part on me being where I'm assigned when I'm assigned.

And to add to the dilemma, the people I ask for advice seem to be split between the "oh totally fix it and then drive the wheels off it" camp and the "don't risk it: get a new car" camp. And it's not chump change we're talking about either way, so I really need to make sure I make the right decision. And that's where you come in: tell me what I should do!

Add your comments below, and when I've decided what I'm going to do (with all of your helpful advice), I'll let you know.

Tut, Tut

2010-03-09T18:31:44Z

I will freely admit to it: I am a geek.

I've always loved dinosaurs (never lost that childhood fascination with them) and will spend hours and hours exploring the exhibits at the Royal Tyrrell Museum (which I very fortunately live close to). I love fantasy (how many times have I read/watched Lord of the Rings? There isn't a big enough number). And do NOT get me started on Ancient Egypt. I've been kicked out of the British Museum at closing time after losing an entire day staring wistfully at the Rosetta stone and the stony face of Ramses the Great. Put anything historical in front of me and I will devour it. Seriously. Yesterday I even watched a documentary on TV about Sweden's King Gustav III. Of whose existence I had been hitherto unaware. But it grabbed me...it was about the past...I couldn't turn the channel if I wanted to!

See? GEEK.

I blame it on my father, actually, who is a major history-buff, and somehow managed to pass on (either genetically or through parenting, but let's not delve into the nature/nurture debate here, okay?) his love of all things old to me.

I love history. I love the past. I am fascinated by it. My oldest daughter seems to share some of this geek-ness with me: she also has not yet outgrown her fascination with dinosaurs and is obsessed with Middle-Earth and all things Tolkien (this kid has one-upped me, though, by learning how to spell her own name in runes!) and she and I both love to watch the collection of BBC videos on Prehistoric Earth that I bought her for Christmas two years ago. Her sister? Not so much.

So now we come to the nub of this post. I am super-duper-extra keen on taking my kids to see King Tut at the Art Gallery of Ontario. It just so happens that we'll be in Toronto on the last two days of this exhibit, and I am going to buy tickets for all of us to go. I saw the treasures of King Tut's tomb when the exhibit toured in the 1970s during Tut-mania (as it was called at the time) - I remember waking up at 5:00 a.m. and boarding the school bus in the dark to head to the museum. I still remember the spectacular death-mask, which has become the iconic image of ancient Egypt to the modern world.

I think there is a good chance my kids will be bored by it, yet I still feel powerfully compelled to take them. It really is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I feel like it's an experience they'll look back on and treasure later in life, as I do my own King Tut experience.

But am I fooling myself? Am I trying to force my own interests on my kids? Will it just register as some dumb blip in their childhoods, or will there come a time that they'll be grateful I took the time and effort to expose them to these cultural treasures and also to share my own passions with them?

Top Ten Olympic Moments

2010-03-02T01:38:30Z

I've always been a big fan of the Winter Olympics, but I gotta be honest with you: I think Vancouver 2010 is going to go down in history (at least my own personal history) as the best Olympic Games yet. I found them exciting, entertaining and engaging, and I have to admit to feeling a sense of let-down now that they're over.

Amongst all the great moments during the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, some stood out more for me than others. Here are my Top Ten Olympic Moments, in no particular order whatsoever:

The Opening Ceremonies
I loved it. All of it. Every minute of it.
Alexandre ~~Dumas'~~ Bilodeau's gold medal
What can you say? First gold medal of the games, first gold medal won on home soil, brotherly love and pride. It was perfect.
Joannie Rochette's courage
You don't have to have suffered a similar loss to appreciate what it took for Joannie Rochette to compete and win a medal after the sudden loss of her mother. She is grace personified, and I cried each time she skated, thinking of my own Mom.
Owning the podium
Nay-sayers begone! Okay, so we didn't get the most medals overall, but we did win more gold medals than Canada has ever earned in any games (winter or summer) before. We also won more gold medals than any other host country in Winter Olympic history - in fact, we also beat the record for most gold medals won by any country in Winter Olympic history. Yeah!
Michael Bublé's rendition of The Maple Leaf Forever
Out of this world. And didn't he look cute in that Mountie uniform?
Catriona Lemay-Doan finally getting to light the cauldron
Funny, classy, apropos. I loved how she looked like she'd been down under the stage for the whole two weeks. (I will now studiously avoid making any further comments about the Closing Ceremonies. Ahem.)
The Canadian women's hockey team's gold medal
And especially the cartoon that made the facebook rounds after they won:
Jon Montgomery's gold medal celebration
Classic - guy gets handed a pitcher of beer on the street in Whistler and chugs it. And chugs it well, too. And then he goes on Oprah!
Marianne Ste-Gelais' reaction to Charles Hamelin's 500m short track victory
A picture speaks a thousand words, right?
Sidney Crosby's goal
And Jarome Iginla's pass from the prone position! This was the defining moment of the games for me.

What about you? What were your favourite moments from Vancouver 2010? What did I miss? What did I nail?

iPhone Apps à la Kat

2010-02-24T23:23:12Z

Okay, Ali gave us her top ten iPhone apps in So You Want It, and then Vicky did it, too. And far be it from me miss an opportunity to jump on a bandwagon, so here is my list of top ten iPhone apps:

Bejewelled 2

If you like to play Bejewelled Blitz on Facebook (you know who you are), you will likely have figured out that lots of your friends whose scores seem astronomically high to you are getting these scores on their iPhone/iPod touch. You want this app. Yes you do. Okay, they don't have any of those weird coin things, but it makes up for it in higher scores. I play it every day (a lot) and it is far and away my favourite iPhone app.

Tweet Deck for iPhone

I'll admit to being a bit of a late adopter when it comes to Twitter. In fact, I'm only just now starting to get my bearings in this new frontier of social media, and part of the reason for that is Tweet Deck. It integrates your Twitter and Facebook feeds (as well as Twitter mentions and direct messages) into one easy to understand grid. The iPhone app is slick and easy to use. If you're on Twitter, I recommend this one.

Solebon

If you're like me and used to while away hours at work playing solitaire on your old-school PC (who, me? Waste time? Never!) then take a look at the new face of solitaire: iPhone style! I tried out a bunch of different solitaire apps and landed on Solebon as my favourite. At $1.99 it's a steal with literally dozens of different kinds of solitaire games, but the free version (Sol Free) is probably all you really need.

Facebook

I love Facebook, and I love the recent upgrades to the Facebook iPhone app, especially the push feature, which means I don't always have to be logging in to see if anyone's commented on my status (vain, yes).

Just Light

This is my favourite of the flashlight-type apps. Turn it on and your screen turns white, generating enough light to read by in a darkened room, or just enough to navigate your way back upstairs after turning off all the downstairs lights. I use this one a lot - but beware, it doesn't time out so if you fall asleep while reading to Just Light, you will drain your battery.

Lose It

Kinda like a Weight Watchers journal, this is app lets you track your daily intake of calories, fat, fibre and lots of other nutrients. It helps you set goals, keeps track for you and even charts your progress. You can add friends to your profile so that you can encourage each other (research shows you're more successful at weight loss if you do it with a friend).

WordWarp

There are a lot of word-scramble type games out there, and WordWarp is the one I settled on. It has a simple interface and a neat definition feature that links you to the wikipedia definition for each word. It also has a suggest a word feature, in case you make one that's not in their dictionary but you think it should be. It's fun.

Plants vs. Zombies

One thing they don't tell you when you buy your iPhone is that your kids will be forever hounding you to play with it and begging you to buy games for them from the app store. I have succumbed to several stupid requests (iDrag Paper being at the top of the list - literally just a roll of toilet paper that you unroll by dragging your finger across the touch screen. Fastest unroller wins. Kids love it) but Plants vs. Zombies is one of those games that I am actually glad I bought. It's silly, but fun and addictive. By PopCap games, the maker of Bejewelled: how can you go wrong?

iBookReader

This one's likely to go the way of the dodo as more and more people snap up iPads, which have apples proprietary iBook Reader software installed, as well as an iBook store. But for now, I've found this to be the easiest way to read books on my iPhone. The screen scrolls for you (which means no need to turn pages) and the scroll speed is controlled simply by tilting the device. There is a fair selection of titles, including a number of classics (from Homer's Odyssey to Pride and Prejudice) available free. For now, I like it, but I'll probably just delete it when I get my iPad (wish, wish).

Where's Waldo?

Another kid pleaser, but also a fun way to while away time if stuck waiting in line somewhere, this is the classic Where's Waldo challenge built into your phone. Not for the faint of vision, though, as many of the things you find yourself searching for seem microscopic on the small screen.

And Who Mothers the Mother?

2010-02-22T19:44:59Z

My six year-old was sick last week. Sore throat, bad cough, headache and congestion. Poor little thing was miserable and you couldn't help feeling bad for her. And of course Doctor Mom was on the case 24-7: plying her with pain relievers and decongestants, cough syrups and just plain Mom medicine (hugs, cuddles and kisses).

She's better now, back to her running, skipping, gregarious self. What a relief. The only problem is this: during my doctoring duties, I managed to catch her bug. And for a variety of reasons, I guess my immune system just wasn't up to the challenge, and I'm as sick now as I can honestly ever remember being.

It all started Thursday afternoon. I was knackered and headachy enough to skip my yoga class (which means I was actually pretty sick already as I love yoga and hate to miss it for anything). By dinner time, I had a whopper of a sore throat. Thursday night I barely slept for the building sinus congestion and intensifying sore throat. But, life and motherhood being what they are, I was committed to accompanying my nine year-old daughter's class on a day-long field trip. After several doses of my wonder-drug (Advil Cold & Sinus, if you're wondering), I was sufficiently alive to board the bus and join in the grade four fun.

I probably should have stayed home and rested.

By Saturday morning I felt like I was at death's door, but I had to go to my French class (I've already missed two and even though it's a class, it feels like a break to me). I got home by lunchtime and then had to take my daughters (and a friend) to the Science Centre (had promised it earlier in the week). I wisely "treated" the kids to two IMAX movies there and managed to doze through both of them!

And then last night I was so, so miserable: I couldn't breathe well enough to even sleep, and when I did fall asleep I'd wake myself with my own hacking cough. I think I only managed about four hours rest altogether. Today, my voice is almost nonexistent and I my sinuses are so clogged that drilling a hole into my forehead sounds like a pleasant relief. Nevertheless, children need to be woken, fed, dressed and bundled off to school and I have three baskets of clean laundry that needs folding.

You know, there are aspects to being a mother that are truly wonderful and invaluable. The adoring eyes of your children looking up at you; the feel of a warm, small, trusting hand in your own; watching them slumber with peaceful, carefree abandon. But there are aspects that are thankless and miserable and hard. And being the mom -- with a bad cold -- is one of those.

But, as the verse says (and you won't often see me quote the Bible, so take note): Physician, heal thyself. Guess I'll hobble back over to the medicine cabinet to OD on Advil Cold and Sinus and try to catch an hour of sleep before the kids get home from school.

*sniff*

J'♥ Québec!

2010-02-03T02:32:13Z

Well, we're home. Sorry I haven't posted more or sooner, but our time in Québec was so busy I hardly had a chance. And then it was 12 hours of travel (kill me now) and I finally find myself with a few moments to check in again. So: we had a terrific time in Québec City, thanks to our remarkable hosts Paule and Sylvain with Québec City Tourism and Patrick with Carnaval de Québec. We were treated to all the best Québec has to offer, from fine dining to amazing local venues, to front-row seats at all the Carnival attractions.

Québec City will go down in my memory as one of the best places our family has ever visited (and that's actually saying quite a lot).

Visit The Urban Traveler for a photo retrospective of one of the best family vacations ever and click here to read my Travel Review:

We're Locked In!!!

2010-01-29T03:47:48Z

Well, the day started at 3:45 a.m. for us today and ended up with my kids locked in the bathroom 4,000 km from home. In between we rode a jet, a turbo-prop (god, I hate those planes) and a van emblazoned with Bonhommes, driven by the very gentil Michel. Yup, we're a travellin' family.

You know you're in an airport when you pay $9 for a sandwich, can't get the WiFi connection to work and can't find a women's washroom. ***SIGH***

But I still wouldn't trade it for a regular day at home!

Suffice it to say, we arrived in Québec City without major incident, were greeted by this lovely gentleman

and got a sweet swag bag upon arrival at the hotel

I had a lovely dinner with Paule from Québec City Tourism and fellow blogger Stephanie from Florida. She'd never seen snow before...that was fun to witness!

Stay tuned for more updates from Carnaval de Québec over the next three days.

À Bientôt, Bonhomme!

2010-01-28T02:56:21Z

Yup! My family and I are going to Carnaval de Québec in (where else) Québec City this week!

Thanks to the folks at Québec City Tourism and Carnaval de Québec, we're going to visit Bonhomme in his ice castle. I'll be posting here, on Facebook and on Twitter over the next five days as we take our journey from (freezing) Alberta to (freezing) Québec City.

Top Ten Reasons Why YOU MUST SEE AVATAR RIGHT NOW

2010-01-25T15:57:59Z

10. It's awesome

9. It's awesome

8. It's awesome...

Okay, but seriously: this movie is awesome, and if you're like I was (until Saturday afternoon) and you haven't gotten around to seeing it yet, then what are you waiting for? GO OUT AND SEE AVATAR. NOW. SERIOUSLY! It's just that good.

It's not very often that I see a movie and then want to just walk right back in and see it again, but Avatar was one of those. And if it wasn't for having my kids with me, I think I would have done just that. Honestly: I loved it that much. But what's so special about it? Well, here's my very own (seriously now) top ten reasons why I think you should go out and buy a ticket to see Avatar right now:

10. The 3D effects. Yes, that's right: I'm not putting the 3D effects at the top of my list. Now, don't get me wrong...the 3D is great in this film, and it greatly enhances the action, but I don't think it's the most stand-out thing about it. Plus, we've all gotten kind of used to 3D by now, haven't we? It's a bit like CG was when it first came out...we were all completely gobsmacked by it, and it just gets better and better in each film, until it ceases to be an in-your-face effect and evolves into a more subtle element that enhances the reality of the overall experience. So it is in Avatar.

9. The World. Pandora: the geniuses at Weta (creators of the computer generated animation that won Oscars for Lord of the Rings) have created an unbelievably beautiful and entirely believable world in Pandora (the alien world where the film is set). One of my favourite touches are the bioluminescent mosses that light up when stepped on, but the entire world is beautiful.

8. The Na'vi (the race indigenous to Pandora). I loved the Na'vi...incredibly integrated with their environment, remarkably tall, slender and blue. Those big, round amber eyes. Beautiful to look at, and such nice cultural details. Their customary greeting "I see you" means not just "I see you with my eyes", but "I see within you, and recognize you as one of the people." They live in a tree called, simply "hometree"...don't ask me why, but I just loved to hear them say "hometree" in this movie. Somehow it just felt right.

7. The Soundtrack (and by soundtrack I mean James Horner's beautiful and evocative score, not the theme song "I See You" by Leona Lewis). Haunting and beautiful, it resonates with lilting pan pipes, birdsong and eerie melody in parts and pounds with tribal drums in others. To me the musical score ranks higher in terms of "effects" than the 3D or CG elements do. The auditory environment of this film is utterly immersive and perfectly supports the visual environment.

6. The Relationship. Yes, it's a bit cliché; yes it's a bit Pocahontas & John Smith, but I wanted Ney'tiri & Jake Sully to succeed nonetheless. Hey...formulas work (that's why they become formulas!) and this one is a success in my book.

5. The "Shero". Trudy Chacone, played by Michelle Rodriguez is the ultimate tough girl herione. While not the main female character, Trudy is a tough girl with a heart of gold. You can't help but love her, and oh yeah, she TOTALLY saves the day and kicks ass. It's not a major role, but with James Cameron at the helm and Sigourney Weaver in the cast, you can't help but compare Trudy to Ripley in Alien(s). She also delivers one of the most fun (and Ripley-worthy) lines in the film, "you ain't the only one with a gun, bitch!"

4. The Antihero. A very accomplished film and stage actor, Stephen Lang delivers an absolutely unrelenting performance as Col. Miles Quaritch, ex-marine and now Blackwater-style head of security for the mining company on Pandora. It's a role that could so easily be overplayed, especially at the climax of the film when Quaritch says, "nothing's over 'till I stop breathing" (in a scene that was hugely evocative of the battle of the Ewoks vs. Imperial Stormtroopers), and yet Lang manages to pull it off with finesse. You hate him, but you also kind of admire his (greatly) misplaced bravery and loyalty.

3. The Deus Ex Machina. Well, maybe we'd better call it a Mater Maxima Ex Machina, but you gotta hand it to the Great Mother for pulling it off. And to quote a different movie altogether, "that's all I'm gonna say about that." You'll understand when you see the movie.

2. The Message/s. I hate to reduce a film of such epic proportions to the level of social commentary, but this film definitely has some strong messages for us to take away. "The strong prey on the weak, and nobody does a thing," says Sully at the turning point in the trailer, and it's true. The human/corporate exploitation of Pandora and their treatment of the Na'vi - "those savages" - reminds us of so much of human history...the European settlement of the Americas, modern-day Iraq and Afghanistan; the exploitation of weaker cultures by more technologically advanced ones for the sake of rich natural resources has been going on for, well, all of human history it seems. Still doesn't make it right, does it? And speaking of exploitation and natural resources, there's a strong environmental message in Avatar as well. While the web of life may not be as explicitly interconnected on earth as it is on Pandora, it is every bit as delicate and beautiful. Ditto to the remarks about the entirety of human history and that not making the exploitation right.

1. The Imaginative Genius. James Cameron apparently conceived of the idea of Avatar 15 years ago, but was only able to bring his vision to live thanks to technological advances in the field of cinematography in the last five years. Well, Avatar will certainly take its place at the head of Cameron's legacy. This film is every bit as high-tech and sci-fi as Aliens, every bit as action-packed as Terminator, and every bit as epic and romantic as Titanic.

Okay, so what are you waiting for? GO SEE AVATAR NOW. NOW!

Amazing Olympic Memories: the Photo Blog Entry

2010-01-22T01:39:11Z

Yesterday two friends and I took our six (collectively) kids out of school for the morning so we could attend the 2010 Olympic Torch Relay celebrations at Calgary's Canada Olympic Park (site of many of the events at the 1988 Olympic Winter Games in this city).

Here are some visual memories of the event:

(I said the memories were amazing, not necessarily the pictures!)

Hoping these are memories my kids will hold close forever.

Creativity and an Epson Artisan 810 Printer Giveaway!

2010-01-18T18:31:30Z

I love to be creative. Whether it's home decorating (at which I am still, admittedly a rank beginner), knitting, photography (again, I'm a complete neophyte), scrapbooking, card making or even just doodling while on the phone, I love to just make pretty things!

Recently I've started to appreciate just how much technology can help me satisfy my creative urge: I've made some really fun projects using iMovie on my Mac, I've had hours of fun goofing around with Photoshop and I'm getting ready to try my hand at digital scrapbooking, too. But I've also discovered that one of the key elements required for good results with digital crafting is an excellent printer.

Being a Mac user for the last decade has forced me to address the printer angle from a different perspective. Things have changed now, but ten years ago (when I got my first iMac)

you couldn't just walk into Staples or Future Shop and buy any old printer...many of them just wouldn't work with Mac's operating system. I found this out the hard way when I bought a fancy HP 3 in 1, brought it home, unpacked it, hooked it up and...nothing. FINALLY, after hours of "troubleshooting" with HP customer service, I called the Mac help line, only to be told that HP didn't support Mac's OS! ARRRGGH. At that time, I was strongly encouraged to purchase an Epson printer, because they were well-known for being not only a superior product, but also for being Mac-friendly. So I did it, and I've never looked back. For the last 10 years I've owned a series of three Epson printers, which is a pretty good track record when it comes to printers (and the amount of use I put them through!).

That's why I'm thrilled to be able to offer the opportunity for one lucky urbanmoms.ca member to win an Epson Artisan 810 printer!

And in the interests of being completely upfront and honest, I am totally jealous here. This is a sweet printer loaded with features, and using the included software, you can create some amazing projects using it.

Here's some information from Epson about the Artisan 810 from Epson:

Unleash your creativity with the Artisan® 810, a sleek, high-performance all-in-one that powers through Ultra Hi-Definition 4"x6" photos in as fast as 10 seconds. Designed to keep up with your busy life, the Automatic Document Feeder allows you to quickly copy, fax and scan stacks of documents, while automatic two-sided printing saves up to 50 percent of paper supplies. In addition, printing, scanning and accessing memory card slots from any room in the house is simple with built-in Wi-Fi® and Ethernet networking. The smart 7.8-inch touch panel also allows you to view, edit and restore faded photos or print CDs and DVDs without a computer. Offering a range of innovative features for creating one-of-a-kind projects like colouring book pages and note paper using your own photos, as well as the option to print directly from an Apple® iPhone, this versatile Artisan 810 is all you need for your everyday printing needs.

There's lots more great info at epson.ca, too!

To win the printer, tell me about what you do to satisfy your creative impulses...are you a crafter? A painter? A carpenter? Maybe you love to bake fancy cookies? Whatever it is that you do to fulfill that need to be creative, share your story below and you'll be eligible to win this beautiful printer. A winner will be chosen at random on January 25, 2010. Remember, you need to be an urbanmoms.ca member to win. Not a member? Why not join now? It's easy and free.

Growing Up Too Fast?

2010-01-13T04:41:12Z

I recently took part in a program sponsored by LeapFrog on my other blog, this is kat, wherein I hosted a party for my daughters and a group of their friends, where they all played with LeapFrog toys. LeapFrog then sent me a bunch of brand-new toys to donate to the charity of my choice (my daughters and I chose the Calgary Women's Shelter).

While writing about the toys (which were, incidentally, excellent) I commented several times that my daughters seemed to have outgrown certain types of toys and characters, in particular: Princesses. My youngest is only six, but she (and all her girlfriends, too) definitely see Princesses as being "babyish" or "for little girls". I know that the Princess brand is marketed very strongly at the preschool girl set, but there is still a lot of Princess-y stuff out there targeted to school-aged girls - take, for example, the Princess game cartridge for the Leapster 2 that my daughter and her pals tested: it's recommended for "ages 4-7".

Here's a taste of what appeals to my six year-old daughter:

(yes, that specific pink guitar...no, she doesn't know how to play guitar)

Clothes. H&M, preferably (thank goodness, because you can't argue with those prices).

So...what's the deal? Should my six year-old still be obsessed with Jasmine and Aurora and Belle? Is she watching too much YTV and not enough Treehouse? What do you think?

I'll sign off with this picture of her in June on her sixth birthday, in her full Hannah Montana costume, including hairpiece and guitar:

And yes, she tells me she's "not exactly that into" Hannah Montana anymore. *SIGH*

Growing up too fast?

Mommy, I Don't Feel Well and a GIVEAWAY

2010-01-05T17:40:39Z

I think all parents cringe on some level when we hear that infamous phrase:

"I don't feel well"

Don't we? Maybe it's because you can tell your little one is sick, and you just want to make them feel better. Or maybe it's because you know they're not sick, and you just want to get them off to school with the least amount of fuss! Possibly you're just not sure, and you're weighing the options in your mind...give them a dose of cough syrup and push them out the door or keep them home just in case? Any way you slice it, kids and colds go together, and that spells trouble for parents.

Take my daughters, for instance. I could tell my oldest was sick on the last day of school before the Christmas holiday. But I gave her some Motrin and sent her on her way...neither one of us wanted her to miss the fun-filled last day of school before Christmas, and hey, it was only a half-day anyway. Over the next few days, both my little girls were pretty sick. Fevers rose and fell, coughs came and went, headaches, earaches and sore throats were mentioned. And through it all, runny noses prevailed. Figuring it was "just a cold", I peppered them with acetaminophen and ibuprofen (bye-bye fever and pain), decongestants (so long stuffy noses) and good old-fashioned Mommy remedies (hot drinks, hugs and kisses, chickensoup and sleep).

We made it to Christmas pretty-much intact, with only a lethargic evening and two very chapped noses. But when they were feeling even worse on Boxing Day, we decided it was time for a trip to the doctor. Thankfully we did, because his first words upon examining my older daughter were, "it's a good thing you brought her in: she's a very sick little girl". Phew!

In the end, after several throat swabs and a lot of poking, peeking and listening, we had the diagnoses: our nine-year old had strep throat (confirmed the next day), infective sinusitis and an inner-ear infection. The six-year old got off a touch easier with no strep or sinus infection, but she did share her sister's ear infection and also had a nasty eye infection to boot!

Now, over a week later and the antibiotics have done their job and both girls are mostly better, except for a lingering cough and ongoing nasal congestion. But that seems to be part of the regular landscape for children in winter, doesn't it? Still, I'd rather they were able to stay a bit more healthy, and not spread the germs between themselves so much. We've started a daily routine of wiping down the high-touch surfaces in our home with antibacterial wipes, as well as reinforcing handwashing and other habits. I'm also carrying wipes and hand sanitizers in my purse and car, so that when we don't have soap and water, we can still clean those germy little hands!

But still: kids are kids, right? They tend to forget basic hygiene habits like frequent handwashing and sneezing or coughing into their sleeves (or they do a shoddy job of it). Aha: but we've had over two weeks of being home with both kids, and with both kids being sick. That's a lot of time to reinforce good hygiene habits! Here are some tips from Wet Ones® that I received before the holidays, and that I have spent the last two weeks reinforcing with my kids:

Washing hands with soap and water is the single most effective way to kill germs and keep hands clean. If there is no soap and water available, give hands a good scrub with Wet Ones® Antibacterial Wipes: keep some in the kitchen, diaper bag, car and lunch boxes so that you're never without them when germs strike. They kill germs and wipe away messes all with one easy wipe.
Groups of kids are prone to spreading germs. Help prevent germs from spreading by wiping down toys after play dates, using hard surface disinfectant wipes meant for cleaning commonly touched areas in your home.
Bring Wet Ones® Antibacterial Wipes to the kid's soccer game, horseback riding lesson or drama class and pass them around - the other parents will thank you!
Use Wet Ones® Antibacterial Wipes on yourself and the kids when you finish grocery shopping- few things are more germ-ridden than a shopping cart handle!

Based on laboratory microbiological testing, Wet Ones® Anti-bacterial Wipes are effective at killing germs, but they also clean away dirt and messes, and won't dry out skin like alcohol-based hand sanitizers. Use WetOnes® Antibacterial Wipes before snack time or other meals, after play dates, and when leaving public areas such as malls or sporting events.

And in the spirit of spreading healthy hygiene habits instead of germs this winter, I'm thrilled to be able to offer FIVE amazing Wet Ones® giveaway packages to lucky urbanmoms.ca members! The packages consist of a range of products from the Wet Ones® line, including both containers and travel sizes.

To win one of the five amazing Wet Ones® gift packs, all you have to do is enter a comment below with your best sick kid story: did you ignore the itching and send your kid to school with chicken pox? (my Mom did!) Did you catch your child holding the thermometer to the light bulb? There are lots of funny, poignant and educational tales to be told about our kids and the germs they fight...let's share them!

Five winners will be chosen at random from all eligible entries on Tuesday, January 12. Remember, to be eligible to win you must be an urbanmoms.ca member. So if you're not a member, join now! It's easy and free.

Our First Christmas Without Her

2009-12-28T19:22:57Z

"The Best of the Best"

That's how my Mom described Christmas 2008 - her last Christmas.

We had our whole family together for the first time in years, celebrating togetherness in moments like this one:

And it was, you know. The best of the best.

Which left me rather nervous about this year. This first Christmas without my mom. No more huge family gatherings: I was back with my family in Calgary, my Dad was visiting my baby sister and her family in England, and Jen was off to the Dominican Republic with her family and some friends. And Mom; well, Mom would be very noticeably absent.

As it turns out, the lead-up to Christmas Day was very, very busy. There was lots of shopping and wrapping to do, loads of baking and even a few parties. And just so you know, when you're mourning, busy is good. So right up until the stockings were stuffed, I managed to keep my mind off it. And then, it hit me. This was Christmas. This was the most family-centred time of the year, and our family was missing someone. I wanted my Mom around, not even for my own sake: I wanted her to be there for her sake. I wanted her to be able to be with my Dad in England for my niece's first Christmas. So yeah. Christmas Eve was hard. I really missed my Mom. And I wanted to think that she was with us, in some small way, so I spent a good deal of time looking at pictures of last Christmas, last spring, last summer. I spent a good deal of time remembering Christmases past, Christmases with her. I also spent a good deal of time crying.

But in the morning (early!) my two little angels managed to bring the joy back to the holiday. Like kids on Christmas morning (go figure!) they were high as kites and giddy with excitement. And their enthusiasm was so effervescent the happiness bubbled over and I was able to enjoy the morning.

By afternoon we headed over to friends' for dinner (so nice not to cook the turkey myself!) and in the end, I can honestly say that I not only survived the first Christmas without my Mom, but I actually had a nice day. And I know that's just how my Mom would've wanted it.

Top Five Holiday Movies

2009-12-22T04:32:32Z

It's that time of year again, where families spend time in front of a crackling fire, watching their favourite Holiday classics on TV. Now, back when I was a kid, you eagerly scanned the TV Guide each week leading up to Christmas, circling the days when Rudolph was on, or the Grinch or Santa Claus is Comin' to Town. There are so many great classic Christmas TV shows (or "Christmas Specials" as we always used to call them) and of course they're all available on DVD now. Not that you'd need it: with the number of all-kids-programming, all-the-time networks on TV these days, you can be pretty certain that you won't miss Frosty the Snowman this year...because it'll be on forty-seven times.

Still, there's something special about just catching a favourite Christmas special or holiday movie when it just happens to be on TV while you're channel surfing, and for some reason it just feels more -- I don't know: fun? spontaneous? to watch it "live on TV" instead of on DVD (perhaps because it's more nostalgic that way?). Anyway. I have a list of five movies that I love to watch every holiday season, and believe it or not, I only own one of them on DVD. And I've never watched it that way, because I always manage to find it one snowy Sunday afternoon in December while I'm busy baking shortbread or addressing cards.

So here are my top five favourite flicks to watch over the holidays (even though two of them have nothing to do with the holidays, and in no particular order):

White Christmas

Holiday Inn

The Sound of Music

A Christmas Carol (Alistair Sim)

The Wizard of Oz

How about you? What are your faves?

Oh: and by the way, if you haven't seen it yet, you MUST, MUST, MUST go see Disney's Christmas Carol (starring Jim Carrey). It is brilliant. And you'll want to see it in 3D, too. I never thought I'd see an adaptation of Dickens' classic Christmas story that I appreciated more than the Alistair Sim version (see above), but this one comes as close as anything ever could. It might (might) just be as good.